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From a young age, I always knew my sister was going to be successful — and nothing would stand in her way,” Rzucek’s statement read. “She was born to be a mother. Boy, was she ready! Closets were full even before she knew she was pregnant. She couldn’t wait. She was my mom, times ten — whether either one of them wanted to admit it. She had ambition in her eyes and wanted a great life for her children and herself.”

Frank Rzucek (left) and Frankie Rzucek Jr. (right) at a court hearing

RJ Sangosti/The Denver Post/Getty Images

Rzucek went on to say that his sister excelled at motherhood. “They were always well-dressed and well mannered,” he wrote. “She taught them to be brave and independent, just like Shanann. She was very successful and independent, before any man came along — and that’s just the way she wanted it.”

But despite Shanann’s independence, Rzucek was always concerned about the distance between them.

“I always worried about her and the girls being so far because I couldn’t protect them,” he wrote. “Growing up, she was a perfect role model. She had a lot of friends and was very popular, which made it hard for me being her little brother trying to protect her from heartbreak and other things. She moved out at 18 and never looked back.”

Chris Watts has been charged with three counts of first-degree murder as well as other charges in the deaths of his wife and two daughters, Bella, 4. and Celeste, 3. He is being held without bond at the Weld County Jail. He has not yet entered a plea.

In an interview with police, Chris Watts claimed that he only strangled his wife after he saw her on the baby monitor strangling their two children — a claim that police have said they do not believe.

As the case against Chris Watts continues, Shanann’s family continues to mourn the woman who seemed to have the life everyone envied. “She was ready to take on the world, and we know she did,” Frankie Rzucek concluded in his statement. “I love you always, your brother, Frankie.”

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